domestic tourism in south africa

Domestic Tourism Growth

Strategy (2012-2020)

Aims & Objectives

• To learn: – The importance of a Domestic Tourism Growth Strategy

(DTGS) for South Africa

– The four strategic objectives of the DTGS

– The activities and actions needed to meet the strategic objectives

– The slogan of the domestic marketing campaign

– What is meant by “Domestic tourism market segmentation”

– The reasons for segmenting domestic tourists

– The five domestic market segments

The Domestic Tourism Growth

Strategy (DTGS) 2012-2020

• Why must a country have a DTGS?

– The DTGS specifically focuses on growing domestic

tourism

– It is a plan for how South African Tourism (SAT),

the National Department of Tourism (NDT) and

the 9 provincial tourism authorities can

collectively grow the domestic tourism market

– Such a plan usually spans a specific period of time,

for example 2012-2020

The problem statement

• Most people have not had the opportunity to travel in their own country for a variety of reasons:– They might not be able to afford to travel

– They might have no reason to take a trip

– They may not have the time to travel

– They may have no income (unemployed)

– Or they may even dislike travelling

• Another problem could be the lack of a culture of travelling among South Africans, especially among previously disadvantaged communities – due to limited marketing and information provision

• Limited product development and diversification may also add to the problem

• Domestic tourists are also more aware of the geographic spread of tourism and tend to travel within their province (intra-provincial travel)

• Domestic tourism also tends to be seasonal (following patterns of school holidays)

Vision

• Sets out aims & objectives for 2020

• Most important goal = to increase domestic tourism’s contribution as a percentage of the overall tourism contribution to the GDP from 54.8% in 2009 to 60% by 2020

• The main objectives are:– To increase domestic tourism expenditure

– To increase domestic volume

– To decrease seasonality and increase the geographical spread of domestic tourism

– Enhance the level of the culture of travelling among South Africans

Strategy

• The Strategy is underpinned by the following

values:

– Responsible tourism

– Respect for culture and heritage

– Service excellence

– Sector transformation

– Transparency

– Integrity

The four strategic objectives of the

DTGS1. Increase domestic tourism expenditure (revenue)

• Need to encourage domestic tourists to spend more money by motivating tourists to:– Take more trips

– Stay at their destination for a longer time, and

– Spend more on average during each trip

• Holiday tourists tend to spend more than VFR tourists

• VFR tourists usually spend their money differently than international tourists

• Domestic tourists spend on transport, food and accommodation and “social” activities. Wildlife, culture and natural attractions are only 2% or less of what domestic tourists do.


DTGS continued...

2. Focus on increasing the number of holiday travellers, adult travellers and the total amount of trips that domestic tourists take

• In SA most domestic tourists still travel for VFR

• To motivate more people to travel, the industry needs to do the following:

– Raise awareness through tourism advertising campaigns and create a holiday travel culture among South Africans

– Distribute information through different media, such as radio, TV, social media and print media to create a desire to travel

– Change people’s interest in travel into action and getting them to actually plan and book a trip

– Change non-holiday travellers to holiday travellers

– Encourage repeat visits and make use of re-selling, cross-selling or up-selling

– Promote short breaks as well as extended vacations


DTGS continued...3. Enhance efforts to combat seasonality and improve the geographic

spread of domestic tourism

• Seasonality– Domestic travel takes place more often during school holidays (in season)

– Need to encourage year round travel and more trips outside school holidays

– Encourage different types of travel at different times of the year (festivals, events, lower rates, etc)

• Geographic Spread– Spread the benefits of tourism more evenly across the country

– Motivate tourists to visit different destinations in a variety of provinces (move away from just intra-provincial travel)

– KwaZulu Natal, Eastern and Western Cape dominate domestic tourism


DTGS continued...

4. Enhance the level of the culture of tourism/travel

among South Africans

• There are many people who do not see any reason to

travel

• The DTGS aims to find ways to motivate these

people to start travelling

The activities and actions to meet

these objectives Objective 1. Increase domestic

tourism expenditure

(revenue)

2. Increase

domestic tourism

volume

3. Enhance efforts

to combat

seasonality and

improve the

geographic

spread of

domestic tourism

4. Enhance the

level of the

culture of

tourism/travel

among South

Africans

Focus Area • Innovation of operations,

attractions and offerings

• Maximise the use of

existing and introduce new

products

• Increase business travel

volume

• Entrenching a culture of

travel

• Differentiated

packaging of

affordable tourism

products

• Review and enhance

conversion

mechanisms

• Maximise use (all

year round) of

existing tourism

assets/facilities

• Differentiated

marketing

• Develop and

implement tourism

awareness

education

programme/campaig

ns

• Enhance training of

tourism product

owners, employees

and neighbouring

communities

Increase domestic tourism

expenditure

• Innovation of operations, attractions and offerings – conduct research on the needs of domestic tourists and audit existing tourism products and services + ensure sufficient infrastructure through investment

• Maximising the use of existing and introducing new products – how existing products can better target domestic tourists through promotion an collaboration between stakeholders (eg. Museums, government departments, sports associations, etc)

• Increase business travel volumes – National Convention Bureau, key national business events & pre- and post-tour business tourism programme

• Establish a culture of travel – encouraging concessions and incentives, market discounted rates, incentive programmes for special interest groups , improve tourist information centres, create more awareness through innovative media

Increase domestic tourism volume

• Differentiated packaging for affordable

tourism products – research into appropriate

pricing, introducing a domestic travel card

(incentive to use discounted packages)

• Review and improve conversion mechanisms

– requires investigation on the most

appropriate mechanisms to implement

improvements

Enhance efforts to combat seasonality and improve

the geographic spread of domestic tourism

• Maximise all year round use of existing tourism assets and facilities – audit to be done of all existing government owned resorts, parks and nature reserves + creating special activities in less visited areas (interlinked cross provincial packaging)

• Differentiated marketing – set up provincial marketing offices in other provinces (inter-provincial partnerships and cross-selling)

Culture of tourism

• Develop and implement tourism awareness and education programmes – increase understanding of tourism and create an appreciation for tourism and it’s value through:– A National Tourism Awareness Campaign

– Promoting and supporting inter-provincial school based sporting trips

– “Back to our roots” campaign

– Strategy to professionalize tour guiding

– Voluntourism linked to CSR

• Improve the training of tourism product owners, employees and neighbouring communities – coordination of training programmes between public and private sector

The slogan of domestic marketing

campaign

• Sho’t Left Campaign launched in 2007 – focus on upcoming young adults was too narrow

• Vaya Mzanzi replaces Sho’t Left

• Slogan: “Whatever you are looking for, it’s right here in South Africa”

• Encourages South Africans to enjoy what attracts foreign interest right on their doorstep

• The campaign emphasises that being a tourist in SA enriches, excites, stimulates, provides time to reconnect with family and friends, and is emotionally beneficial

The slogan of domestic marketing

campaign continued…

• 5 pillars that underpin the 2012-2020 campaign to activate 5 new market segments:– The brand marketing campaign by SAT and provinces

to inspire South Africans to travel

– The ultimate South African user-generated road map to drive word of mouth

– Industry participation in the promotion of affordable, exciting packages that will trigger travel

– Event promotion and packaging of sports, music, lifestyle, and cultural events across the country

– Direct consumer involvement through attractions, information provision and public relations

Domestic tourism market

segmentation

• What is meant by “Domestic tourism market

segmentation”?

– Grouping people together with similar

characteristics such as age, race, income, and

purpose of travel – these form different tourist

segments

Reasons for market segmentation

• Each segment provides opportunities for

growth

• It is important for SAT to understand these

segments so that each segment will help them

to provide relevant information, develop new

products that the segments can afford, and

use the best ways of communication in

helping to create a better culture of travel

Profiles of the five domestic tourism

markets

• Spontaneous budget explorers– 18-24 years old

– Middle to high income persons from all races and family situations

– Disposable income of +/- R5 000 per month

– Stay +/- 5-4 nights and take around 3 trips a year

– Average spend per trip = R1 252

– Travel do discover new people, places and adventures + to get away from monotony of daily life, add to life experiences and create fond memories

– Mostly prefer a weekend holiday filled with activities as opposed to a quiet weekend getaway

– Want to have fun in different surroundings


markets continued…

• New horizon families– 35 years and older

– Mostly middle income black, coloured and Indianfamilies

– Disposable income of +/- R5 000-R10 000

– Most are married and have children

– Stay 5 nights, take 3 trips a year


– Travel is a way to educate their children and to broaden their perspectives. Also see travel as an opportunity to spend time with family and as a reward for hard work

– Many feel that special offers on hotels and flights will make them travel more



• High-life enthusiasts– 25-45 years old

– Mainly high income black, coloured and Indian single people, most of them without children

– Disposable income = +/- R10 000 or more per month

– Stay on average 4.5 nights, take 3 trips a year


– Travel is a way to boost their social status and experience the finer things in life in different settings

– Prefer weekend holidays filled with activities

– Domestic travel is the quickest and easiest way to enjoy such experiences



• Seasoned leisure seekers– 25-45 years old

– Mainly middle and high income white people without children


– Stay on average more than 7 nights, take around 4 trips per year


– Travel is a way of life and a necessity

– Grown up going on regular holidays and knows the value of travel

– Tend to travel to escape, relax and spend quality time with friends and family



• Well-to-Do Mzanzi families – 25-45 years old

– Mainly high income black, coloureds and Indians with dependent children


– Stay on average just less than 6 nights, take around 3 trips per year

– Spend on average per trip: +/- R1 700

– Travel is all about escaping the city and being able to spend time with family and friends in a different location

– Want to expose children to alternative ways of life and cultures

– Also attracted to special offers on flights and hotels

domestic tourism in south africa

Education